


A Teacher

by Chrononautical



Category: Naruto
Genre: Future Fic, Gen, Kid Fic, Kid not actually present
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-29
Updated: 2013-05-29
Packaged: 2017-12-13 08:42:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,791
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/822312
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chrononautical/pseuds/Chrononautical
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The wheel never stops turning. Nothing of value can be made completely secure.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Teacher

Lee had the greatest respect for Guy-sensei’s Eternal Rival, of course, but he wouldn’t exactly characterize his relationship with the Copy Ninja as close. To be invited to a secret meeting in the dead of night at the top of a cliff was highly unexpected. Overcome with Youthful Curiosity, Lee arrived for the midnight meeting shortly after sunset. He knew Kakashi-sensei would be late, but he filled the time doing one-handed pushups. If he couldn’t do five thousand with each arm before the famous shinobi arrived, he would run all the way to Wind Country and back without resting. 

Kakashi-sensei appeared with a casual “Yo,” only a few minutes after the appointed time. Lee was just finishing his six thousandth left handed pushup when he arrived, so he was able to spring to his feet without shame. It was unfortunate that he would miss out on the invigorating run, but something like that took time, and he did have to think of his duty to the village. 

“Good evening, Kakashi-sensei,” Lee said, wiping the sweat from his forehead as subtly as he could. “It is good to see you again.” 

“Yeah,” Guy-sensei’s Eternal Rival agreed with indifference. He dropped gracefully at the edge of the cliff, curling one knee up and letting the other dangle, casually ignoring the height. 

“You wanted to speak with me?” Lee reminded him politely, taking a seat next to him. 

The inscrutable man didn’t answer for a while, staring into the sky. He was such a cool and mysterious figure. Even now that Lee was a respected jonin himself, he felt a little intimidated by Kakashi-sensei’s powerful presence. 

“Guy said you were thinking of taking students this year.” 

“Ah! Yes! I am the same age now that Guy-sensei was when I met him. With his Magnificent Guidance and Helpful Instruction, he enabled me to Achieve My Dream of becoming a Splendid Shinobi despite being unable to use ninjutsu or genjutsu. Now my dream is to pass on his Wonderful Teachings and to help young shinobi grow into powerful ninja following his Fine Example! That will be my new Way of the Ninja!” 

Kakashi-sensei did not even glance at Lee once during his Impassioned Description of his Future Hopes, but when he gazed down at their Village Hidden In The Leaves, Lee had the distinct impression that he was looking away. “Don’t.” 

Lee choked for a moment, too violently overcome by feeling to say anything at all. “I am well aware that many people in the village object to the idea of me as a teacher for genin. Because I cannot use ninjutsu, they believe I will not be a suitable teacher for those who can. Despite my status as a jonin and my many successful missions some people will always see me as inferior. However, I have already proved those people wrong. I have led many teams of Capable Shinobi and utilized their jutsu in Appropriate Strategic Situations. I am ready to guide the youth of Leaf Village down the Path of Righteousness!” 

Kakashi-sensei did not look at Lee at all during his Emphatic Defense. Lee wasn’t even sure he was listening, which was strange, since he seemed to have called Lee out in the middle of the night to offer career advice. 

“It’s Obito,” he said softly, still staring down at the village. 

“Your son?” 

“Ever since he learned to speak he’s said he wants to be a shinobi just like me. He can’t. His grades at the Academy are all right. Nothing stellar. He definitely isn’t a genius by any measure. His jutsu is mediocre at best. He practically passes out after the simplest substitutions. His taijutsu is even worse. He’s weak.”

Lee didn’t know quite what to say. Usually fathers praised their children to unbelievable extremes. Just that morning Choji had spent nearly an hour telling Lee that his own red-faced infant was a natural talent because of the amount he ate and the gusto with which he belched. Lee didn’t think Kakashi-sensei would speak ill of his own son if it were not the truth. “Perhaps you’re being too hard on him?” Lee couldn’t remember the last time he’d met the boy, but if he was still at the academy then he was still growing. It was too soon to say he could never Achieve His Dream.

“I’m not. Weak shinobi die, or worse, get their teammates killed. I told him a month ago to quit the academy.”

“What? How could you say such a thing to your own son? How could you tell him to Give Up His Dream?” 

“His dream won’t come true. By the time I was his age I’d already been a chunin for three years and my Sharingan isn’t a Kekkei Genkai. The only thing of mine he seems to have inherited is unusually low chakra. He can never be a shinobi like me. If he wants to hate me for telling him the truth then he can do that for his whole life. If he hates me for a hundred years, I’ll die happy.” 

“You don’t need to be a Genius to become an Excellent Shinobi!” 

“Apparently, he agrees with you. He refused to quit.” 

Lee nodded in satisfaction. If Kakashi’s own son wouldn’t take his advice, then there was no reason Lee needed to listen regarding His Own Aspirations as a Teacher. 

“I never really had a dream.” Moonlight on silver hair looked very melancholy. Lee much preferred Crashing Waves or a Dramatically Setting Sun for scenery, but then, he didn’t particularly approve of being so downhearted in the first place. Next time Kakashi asked for a Secret Meeting, Lee would choose the setting. “I’ve wanted things, of course. To keep my precious comrades alive. To redeem my family name. But never what you would really call a dream.” 

“You must let your son strive to Reach His Dream!” Lee interrupted, as dramatically as he could. It would be better if Guy-sensei were here to convince his Eternal Rival. Kakashi would be more likely to Heed His Wisdom. Still, Lee would do his best. “A Dream is the Candle that Ignites the Fire of Greatness! Youth is the Ample Clay from which Character Is Molded! You cannot know that your son will not make his dream come true, but to Give Up A Dream is to blindly accept a Wound which will Never Heal!” 

“Right, right.” The masked ninja waved away Lee’s Heartfelt Argument with one hand. “But he’s still weak. He’ll pass the graduation exam next year. My name is enough to let him coast by on nothing but hard work.”

“Working Hard isn’t Coasting By!” 

“It isn’t good enough, either. He needs a rival so far out of his league it’s laughable. He needs those ridiculous self-rules that quadruple his training. He needs—God help him—he needs the Lotus.” 

Lee didn’t understand. Not until Kakashi-sensei looked up at him. Lee had seen that expression on his face only once before. During the war, when everyone thought Naruto was dead, Kakashi-sensei had turned to Lady Tsunade with just such an expression and said, “He’ll make it.” It was a look of faith, hope, and utter fear. Kakashi-sensei had lived too long as a shinobi to be an optimist. Weak ninja died; Kakashi always did Everything In His Power to make Those He Cared About strong. That much was clear from his Eternal Friendship with Guy-sensei. 

“Next year, you say? I see. If I accept a team this year, they won’t have moved on by then.” 

“I know you like to do things exactly the way Guy did them, but wouldn’t you rather wait for a student who needs you?”

Before Lee could answer, Kakashi-sensei cut him off in an uncharacteristic rush of words. “I’m not asking for any special favors. Well, not any more than the one. If he fails whatever test you have for your team, you send him right back to the academy. Failing a genin who isn’t ready is the kindest possible thing. Just—just if he does pass.”

“I’d be Extremely Honored to have your son on My First Genin Team! Anyway I was invited to the Village Hidden In The Sand for some sparring practice with the Kazekage next month. I would have had to Decline The Opportunity if I had a team relying on me, so this is Very Convenient!”

Kakashi-sensei seemed to relax. “Thank you,” he said softly. He didn’t say anything else for a long time, so Lee assumed they were done talking. He rose to make his farewells. 

“Lee,” the older jonin stopped him with a strong hand on his forearm. “Not the Lotus. Not right away.” 

Fatherhood must be truly difficult, Lee thought. Balancing the desire to Protect A Child with letting that child Grow and Strive for their Own Dreams while knowing that No One went out into the world without being hurt one way or another must be Truly Difficult. Teaching would probably be very similar, and he would do well to keep Kakashi-sensei’s example in mind. “Of course not! I would never teach a Forbidden Technique to a student before he proved his Dedication to Leaf Village and his own Way of the Ninja!” 

“Don’t suppose I can convince you to steer him clear of the bowl cut, too, eh?” 

“Why would I? It is the Perfect Hairdo for a shinobi on the go! It is Stylishly Long, without offering an Inappropriate Hold for an enemy. Manageable and Easily Maintained during long missions, this bowl cut is the Number One hairstyle for the Fashionable Ninja of Today! Taught to me by Guy-sensei!” 

“Yeah, yeah. Just don’t push it on him.” 

Understanding Kakashi-sensei’s worries and Natural Hesitance made Lee want to Honestly Reassure him. “It probably goes without saying,” he offered in his Nice Guy Pose, “but in addition to helping my genin team Achieve Their Dreams and become Splendid Ninja, I will naturally protect my comrades with My Very Life!” 

Kakashi-sensei just snorted. “Of course you will. You’re a shinobi of Hidden Leaf.” Lee thought he looked a little reassured nonetheless. When he looked down onto the village again, Lee realized that he was looking to exactly the same spot every time. “Even you can’t help Obito achieve his dream, though. He can never become a shinobi like me,” Kakashi-sensei repeated. 

Lee didn’t suppose there was an argument other than Hard Work and Formidable Effort that would change Kakashi’s mind, so he decided to Prove It Could Be Done. He was so Consumed With Planning that he almost didn’t hear Kakashi’s soft words addressed more to the house below than they were to Lee. 

“Hopefully he’ll become a stronger one.”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm maybe a little obsessed with the way Kakashi views Guy as an equal and a rival. I love the anime episode where they're kids together. And the fact that they come out about equal in their competitions despite the difference in their relative skill sets and abilities. Not everyone is born a genius. 
> 
> Also, you know, Lee.


End file.
